Wolverine

Formed: 1995From:
SwedenLast Known Status: Active

Background

Marcus Losbjer and Stefan Zell formed Wolverine in 1995. Stefan's younger brother Mikael joined pretty soon thereafter. In the early days the band played melodic deathmetal. A few line-up changes and three demos later Andreas "Bagge" Baglien and Carl-Henrik Landegren joined the band. Together they recorded Wolverine's fourth demo called Fervent Dream. The music had then evolved to melodic progressive-metal mixed up with some "growl-vocals", an element kept since the band's earlier days.

Shortly after the release of Fervent Dream the band got signed by Zizania Entertainment Group. Through Zizania the band released a partly re-recorded version of Fervent Dream as a mini-CD in November 1999. That same month they also performed outside Sweden for the first time in their career. Fervent Dream was received amazingly well by both media and audience. The band got amazing reviews and the CD soon sold out.

During 2000, Carl-Henrik Landegren was replaced by Per Broddesson and the band also signed on to a label called Emerald Factory which resulted in a re-release of Fervent Dream in April 2001. In July 2001, the band recorded their debut full-length album The Window Purpose at Spacelab in Kempen, Germany together with Oliver Philipps and Christian "Moschus" Moos both of Everon-fame.

In the autumn of 2001, the band parted ways with Emerald Factory and it was decided that the album would be released through DVS Records instead. A bassplayer, Thomas Jansson, also joined the band at this time since Stefan had decided to focus on his vocals.

The Window Purpose received an overwhelming reception by the fans and media. Wolverine also did a short European tour together with Canadian band Into Eternity.

In 2002 the band signed to Elitist Records, a sublabel to the much bigger Earache Records. Wolverine recorded Cold light of Monday during 2003. It proved that Wolverine was a band that wasn't afraid to try out different approaches with their music. The album scored really high points in several of Europe's leading magazines.

2005 saw the re-release of The Window Purpose, remastered and with a newly recorded version of the song Again which originally appeared on Fervent Dream. During the summer of 2005 the band, once again, went to Germany and the Spacelab studio to record the album Still. Unfortunately the band and Earache didn't see eye to eye on a few matters regarding the recording of the album. Both parties finally agreed to go separate ways. Not long thereafter Wolverine signed on to Candlelight Records and it was decided that Still would be released in June 2006.

During spring that same year Bagge left the band after 8 years as a member. He was asked to leave since his commitment to the band had faded and in order to go on as a band to be reckoned with Wolverine needed new blood. Bagge's replacement was a guy called Per Henriksson.

Thomas Jansson, the bass player for Swedish metal Wolverine, has posted the following report online:

"Just wanted to jot down a few lines regarding the progress of our upcoming album. We have been working rather frequently on recording demo-versions of the songs to be sent to the label for approval. The tracks will most likely be sent within a week's time. All material for the album has not yet been written and arranged, but we are getting there - we have all the ideas we need! Now it's just a matter of finalizing the 'basic' arrangements for the last few songs. When this is done, further details will be added more easily. Now chew on this for a while and dwell in your own fantasies about the future emotional treats we will try to provide you music-wise."

Swedish progressive metal act Wolverine has been working on their new album for three years running, and according to drummer Marcus Losbjer the recording will be taking place soon. He issued the following update:

"I’m looking forward to FINALLY record the new album, after more than 3! years of writing in a limbo! The absence of inspiration have been really severe this time. This album have been a struggle to write, by far the most difficult album to puzzle together out of all the Wolverine albums. It’s the complete opposite to the last album (Still) that was a dream to write. It was fast and actually quite easy!

As you may have read on forums, myspace and so on, we’ve had more difficulties to deal with this year than just the minor problems concerning the band. The heart problems with Stefan's daughter has maybe been the toughest. A reminder of how fragile we are! Everything has been mixed into a big melting-pot, just ready to explode! Thankfully, it didn’t. After the ProgPower Europe gigs in October, we found a little spark to lighten the inspiration again, this time I hope it will never go as ice-cold as it has been!"

"We're back from ProgPower Europe 2008 and what a great weekend it was. It was a blast to meet all our friends as well as new acquaintances. As you may know we played two sets. The set on Saturday was basically the same set as when we opened the first edition of PP back 1999. Unfortunately we had to cut one song ('Post Life') due to the fact that the festival were behind schedule. There was also one song ('Miles Away') that we played in -99 but never recorded. We did film the show in -99 but when we came back home we discovered there was no sound on the film... So it's a lost song. We suffered from bad sound on stage as well as being pretty stressed up because of the hasty line-check we did right before the curtain went up. People seemed to like the show though so we were pretty happy about it anyway.

"The set on Sunday lasted an hour and consisted of songs from all our albums, except for 'Fervent Dream'. We also threw in 'Post Life' which was a highlight for me. This time around we had a fantastic sound on stage and we didn't have to hurry through our line-check the way we did the day before. What a difference it was! Thanks to that and a wonderful audience I think it's safe to say we did one of our best shows ever. We loved every minute of it so thank you to all who supported us that night. It meant the world to us! More...

Australian prog death metallers Alarum have been confirmed for the tenth-anniversary edition of the ProgPower Europe festival, set to take place from the 3rd to the 5th of October at JC Sjiwa in Baarlo, The Netherlands. It will be a very special performance as it is a one-off European show. The festival billing is now shaping up as follows:

Swedish metallers WOLVERINE have cancelled their appearance the Rock The Mountain Festival in Söderhamn, Sweden on July 22nd. According to an update:

"Once again we are sorry to say that we have been forced to cancel an upcoming gig.

"The reason for the cancellation is that Stefan's (Zell - singer) daughter was born with a heart-condition. She didn't need immediate surgery at birth but now she's taken a turn for the worse so Stefan and his family will travel to Gothenburg which is one of two cities in Sweden that are able to perform the surgery needed. They will be in Gothenburg over the next weekend and that's when the gig was supposed to take place." More...

Drummer Marcus Losbjer of the Swedish metallers WOLVERINE has issued the following update:

"A couple of weekends ago I went down to Stockholm to continue writing songs for the next album. Me, Per [Henriksson, keyboards] and Thomas [Jansson, bass] gathered in a small rehearsal room in Nacka. I must say it was a kind of new experience for us all, writing songs with only keys, bass and drums. In the end we came up with quite a few new interesting ideas and we feel that we're really getting closer completing the basic tracks for the album."

"Generally, the way the songwriting process goes at the moment, is me and Per recording and sending ideas to eachother at home. This way of songwriting is much more now that it was for the 'Still' album, and with Per, as a new member of the band, writing songs works very well. It sends a new fresh and different vibe to it all, I really think you'll notice that!" More...

Swedish metallers WOLVERINE have been forced to cancel their appearance at the 2008 edition of ProgPower UK, will take place on March 28th and 29th in Bristol, UK. A statement from the band reads as follows:

"It’s with very mixed feelings we have to announce that Wolverine will not be playing at ProgPower UK 2008 after all. We had really been looking forward to this show after hearing only great things about it. We do however have a really good reason for not being there. The thing is that, if all goes well, Stefan (Zell - vocals) and his wife Jamina are having a child by the end of March. They just found out and are of course thrilled about this. At first we thought that we might make it to the gig anyway but since the birth then was scheduled until only 11 days before the show and it’s the first time Jamina gives birth it’s possible (and even likely) that it won’t take place until during or after the show. The option of Stefan going to the show and risking not being there when the child arrives isn’t really an option for obvious reasons.

We hope we can make it up to those of you who were looking forward to seeing us play, at a later date. Until then we’ll put all our energy into completing the next album which, so far, is taking shape pretty nicely.

We also want to express our gratitude towards the crew at ProgPower UK for being so understanding and supportive about this situation, they have really been tremendous. It just confirms all the great things people have been telling us about this festival and the people behind it.

We are really sorry to have to let our fans down by canceling this show but at the same time we hope you understand the complexity of the situation we’re in. And as we mentioned earlier, we’ll do all we can to make it up to you! Thank you."

Sweden's WOLVERINE have parted ways with keyboardist Andreas "Bagge" Baglien. The group's official statement on the matter reads as follows:

"It's with great sadness we have to announce that Bagge has left the band. Bagge has played with us since 1998 and he is like a brother to all of us so this is by far the toughest decision we've ever had to make within the band. However, it became clear after playing with Per Henriksson for the last few months (he stepped in to replace Bagge temporarily while Bagge was away for work for a few months) that we needed to bring him in full-time in order for the band to truly blossom again. I'm sure Bagge is the first to tell you that his contribution to the band during the last year or so hasn't been what it used to be. I won't go into any more detail on the matter since Bagge will post a message on our messageboard shortly announcing his departure and feelings regarding the whole thing.

"The entire band wishes Bagge all the best in the future. He is a truly talented musician and his ability to write great and interesting music is enormous. We also want to thank him for all 8 amazing years. We've been through a lot and it's been a blast! Thank you! At the same time, we would like to welcome Per Henriksson to the band. He's been playing with us for a few months now and everything has worked out amazingly well. We've done two gigs with him already and we had the best of times. He is a great player and and equally great guy. Info on him will be posted as soon as possible so you can dig into his past. Once again, welcome Per!"

As previously reported, Candlelight Records has set a June 26 release date for the new album WOLVERINE, entitled "Still".

"Still" was recorded in part at Spacelab studio in Tönisvorst, Germany. The follow-up to 2003's "Cold Light of Monday" was produced by Oliver Philipps, Christian "Moschus" Moos and WOLVERINE and was mixed at the end of August.

Swedish melodic metal/prog/death band Wolverine have officially signed with Candlelight Records. Originally formed in 1995, the band has previously released material with Elitist/Earache Records. Here's a statement from the band:

"We can at last announce that Wolverine has signed with Candlelight Records. We've been in touch with various labels and as it turned out Candlelight came up with the best offer by far. The past 6 months have been really hard for the band and with the split from Earache topping it all off it's extremely nice to have found a new 'home.' There is no release date set for [our new album] 'Still' yet but we'll announce it really soon. It's about time the album sees the light of day because we all promise you that some of our best songs are on that album. We definitely want to share them with our fans as soon as humanly possible."

Sweden's WOLVERINE have posted the following message on their official web site:

"It's with mixed feelings we have to announce that WOLVERINE is no longer a part of Earache Records.

"We released 'Cold Light of Monday' through Earache and we also re-released 'The Window Purpose' through them, two albums that we are very proud of. However, during the last months it became obvious that Earache wasn't the right label for us and that they wouldn't do 'Still', our upcoming album, justice.

"Being without a label is of course not the most ideal of situations for a band but at the same time we are confident that we'll find a label that suits us much better than Earache did.

"We would like to appologize to the fans that have been expecting 'Still' to be released soon. We hope you find comfort in the fact that the entire band feels that parting ways with Earache was the only right decision to make. With a little luck the album will be out in a not too distant future. Hopefully you'll feel when you listen to it that it was worth the wait.

"The hunt for a new label is on. Wish us luck! We'll keep you posted!"

Swedish Prog-Rockers, Wolverine are currently recording the follow-up to 2003's "Cold Light of Monday," tentatively due later in the year through Elitist/Earache. The following recording update was posted on the band's official web site:

Yesterday the recording of the drums began and to our great delight Marcus managed to lay down all songs except one on their first takes. The result is really great. It's always nice to be able to capture that extra energy that you tend to have during your first takes of a song. We recorded the drums at Studio Soundcreation in Bollnäs together with Per Ryberg with whom we recorded our very first EP with back in 1998. The reason we do the drums here and the rest at Spacelab is that it's darn expensive to transport the drums from Sweden to Germany. On Sunday we're off to Spacelab to continue our work. Can't wait!

Sweden's Wolverine have parted ways with guitarist Per Broddesson. "Per had been a member of the band since 2000 and he will of course be missed," the group write on their web site. "The decision to part ways was however mutual and there are no hard feelings involved in this split. The split took place only because of finiancial matters as well as musicial differences. From what we know, Per will continue his musical journey with his band The Doomsday Cult and we wish him the best of luck with that. Wolverine will, however, continue with full force as a 5-piece. Cliché or not, we have high hopes that our next album (which we hope to record next summer) will be our best effort to date. We are aiming for a non-concept album with songs more heavy and aggressive than on 'Cold Light of Monday'. We're simply in a heavy metal mode right now!!"

Wolverine's latest album, "Cold Light Of Monday", was released late last year through Elitist/Earache. Download an MP3 of the track "New Best Friends" at this location.

Sweden's WOLVERINE have commenced the songwriting process for their next studio album, tentatively due next year through Elitist/Earache Records. "This time around we won't do a concept album," the band write on their web site. "We decided we wanted to try to create an album that just has a collection of really great songs that are able to stand on their own. A new challenge that we very much are looking forward to. We hope to get together in a few weeks to continue our work."